According to the Pokédex records, Melmetal is said to be a Pokémon that first appeared three thousand years ago.
Its entire body is made of a special liquid alloy.
Not only is it unbelievably tough, it also possesses astonishing elasticity.
Because it has the ability to create steel,
the people of ancient times
worshipped it as a god.
But in Shiko's view,
this thing probably did not possess the ability to produce steel.
What it had
was the ability to devour steel.
At the same time,
the military inspector who had been carrying out surveillance high in the sky
froze on Noctowl's back
the moment he noticed Melmetal's appearance.
This...
What the hell is going on!?
That silver Pokémon—
that should be the legendary third-tier Legendary, Melmetal, right!?
It actually lives on Mt. Silver too!
But!
Now was not the time to be marveling over that!
Why had this Pokémon appeared here?
Why had it shown up at the entrance to Registeel's cave!?
The inspector rubbed his eyes.
After repeatedly confirming that what he was seeing was reality and not an illusion,
a string of questions surfaced in his mind.
Subconsciously,
he looked toward Shiko, who was hiding in the forest.
This guy,
from beginning to end,
had remained completely calm and composed.
Shiko had even shown
a trace of concealed excitement on his face
when Melmetal appeared.
Could it be...
A bold and absurd thought
suddenly burst into the inspector's mind.
Was all of this caused by GeoGreymon's doing?
Was it Shiko's arrangement
that had brought Melmetal to Registeel's cave entrance?
How could that be possible!
How could GeoGreymon possibly accomplish something like this?
How could it possibly manipulate a third-tier Legendary!?
He decisively rejected that thought.
But after rejecting it,
he could not come up with a more suitable answer.
At the entrance,
Melmetal stood where it was.
The black eyeball inside the nut on its head
looked toward the depths of the cave.
It could clearly sense
that the last remaining piece of alloy from its body
was deep inside the cave.
But at the same time,
it could also sense
that within the cave was a powerful aura
not the slightest bit weaker than its own.
Dense Steel-type energy rampaged wildly
and was gradually becoming violent.
It immediately realized
that this cave
was probably Registeel's territory.
In that case,
its earlier judgment had been correct—
that fragment of memory alloy, which had refused to answer its summons,
had been madly devouring rare Steel-type materials and items.
It was just that
the precious Steel-type item it had imagined
was actually Registeel itself,
slumbering in this cave.
And now,
the uneven, chaotic breathing inside the cave,
along with the violently surging storm of Steel-type energy,
all signaled one thing.
That sleeping ancient ruler of Mt. Silver,
the one who had dominated this place since time immemorial,
was now on the verge of awakening.
Or rather,
it had already awakened!
What should it do!?
Melmetal became conflicted.
If it did not enter,
then who knew how long it would take before it could complete
the remaining Steel-type law within itself.
But if it went in,
there was an extremely high chance
that it would come into conflict with Registeel.
Facing this veteran third-tier Legendary head-on in battle,
Melmetal did not have that much confidence either.
It could not quite decide.
Not far away,
as Shiko watched Melmetal hesitate and waver,
he held his breath and became tense as well.
This thing wasn't about to back down, was it?
Could it really keep its composure,
resist such a huge temptation,
and choose to leave?
But in the very next second,
Shiko immediately let out a sigh of relief.
Things were still progressing in the direction he had planned.
After weighing everything in its heart,
Melmetal concluded that as long as it could absorb this final alloy material,
it would naturally be able to return to its peak state.
As a third-tier Legendary that was also pure Steel-type,
Melmetal believed that it definitely would not be weaker than Registeel!
Then fight it was!
Winning might be difficult,
but forcing a draw and finding an opportunity to withdraw
was still something it was confident in!
After considering that point,
it made up its mind.
Without hesitation,
it entered the cave.
It went in!
The moment he saw Melmetal's reaction,
Shiko clenched his fists, his face full of excitement.
It went in!
High in the sky,
the military inspector saw this scene
and his emotions instantly collapsed to the extreme.
When two third-tier Legendaries met, one mountain could not contain two tigers. If they truly clashed,
it would definitely become a colossal crisis!
Without the slightest hesitation,
he immediately called Minister Kenjiro to report the situation.
But unexpectedly,
all that came through from the phone
was a string of busy tones.
He called several times,
but it still did not connect.
What was going on?
What exactly had happened?
At such a critical moment,
how could he not get through!?
The inspector frowned deeply, his face filled with anxiety and agitation.
He had not even had time to press the communicator's dial button again
when, from the silver mountain below,
two completely different furious roars
suddenly rang out.
Immediately afterward,
two terrifying auras began to spread,
constantly colliding, tearing, and grinding against each other.
A powerful steel storm swept out,
covering the surrounding area for dozens of miles and soaring straight into the clouds.
Under the impact of that razor-sharp Steel-type energy,
the Noctowl beneath him was instantly covered in wounds.
It nearly fainted on the spot.
Inside the cave,
just as Shiko had anticipated,
Melmetal and Registeel,
the two third-tier Legendaries,
had already begun a fierce clash and collision.
(End of Chapter)
[200 Power Stones = 1 Extra Chapter]
[Check out my Patreon to read 20+ chapters ahead]
[[email protected]/Zukooo]
[Thanks for your support!]